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Just in time for Father's Day! A recent study reveals that a father's
participation in in-school activities and events can have a significant
impact on his children's educational success. Read about the implications
of that study and learn some things you can do to make every day Fathers'
Day at your school.

Fathers'
Involvement in Their Children's Schools reveals that children whose
fathers participate in classroom activities and school meetings and events
receive higher grades, enjoy school more, and are more likely to participate
in extracurricular activities than children whose fathers don't participate
-- regardless of the level of maternal participation.

"This study provides hard evidence about the powerful and positive influence
that parents can have as full and equal partners when they make the commitment
to help their children get a good education," Vice President Gore said.
"Fathers matter a great deal when it comes to helping their children succeed
in school and this study should encourage millions of American fathers
to step up to the plate and make a difference in their children's education."

The study is based on data from the 1996
National Household Education Survey (1996 NHES). In that survey, interviews
were conducted with resident (in the home) and non-resident parents of
nearly 17,000 students in kindergarten through grade 12. Middle- and high-school
aged children of those parents were also interviewed. Following the interviews,
an evaluation was made on the degree of both maternal and paternal involvement
in their children's schools. Mothers and fathers were said to be uninvolved,
moderately involved, or highly involved according to how many of four
specific school-based activity categories each participated in. The four
categories were general school meetings, parent-teacher conferences, special
school events, and school volunteerism.

FATHERS MAKE A DIFFERENCE, RESEARCHERS CONCLUDE

After comparing parental involvement with student achievement and behavior,
the researchers concluded that:

Students in two-parent families were 43 percent more likely to get
mostly A's if their fathers were highly involved in their schools.

Students in middle and high school whose fathers did not live in
the home were 43 percent more likely to get mostly A's if their fathers
participated in even one in-school activity.

Children of highly-involved resident fathers were 55 percent more
likely to enjoy school than children of uninvolved fathers.

Children whose fathers did not live in the home but were involved
in school activities were more likely to enjoy school than children
whose non-resident fathers had only out-of-school contact with them.

Students in middle school and high school were 88 percent more likely
to participate in extracurricular activities if their resident fathers
were highly involved in the school.

Students whose non-resident fathers were involved in their schools
were more likely to participate in extracurricular activities.

Students whose resident fathers were highly involved in their schools
were slightly less likely to repeat a grade than other students.

Students were 39 percent less likely to repeat a grade and 50 percent
less likely to be suspended or expelled if their non-resident fathers
participated in even one in-school activity.

KIDS NEED FATHERS TOO!

The results of the survey indicated that both resident and non-resident
fathers who were involved with their children's schools provided significant
educational advantages not realized when only mothers participated in
school activities. According to the report, fathers appear to fill a different
role in their children's lives and consequently in their education. Fathers,
they say, play more with their children than mothers do and they play
with them differently. Fathers tend to be more tactile and physical, and
they appear to foster the development of analytical skills, particularly
in their sons. In addition, children appear to rely more on their fathers
for factual information and often believe that fathers and mothers have
different family goals. Fathers, children say, think it's important that
they learn and do well in school. Mothers want them to "feel special and
important."

"Plausible hypotheses that stem from this research," the survey's authors
say, "are that maternal involvement is beneficial for the social and emotional
adjustment of children to school, particularly young children, but that
paternal involvement may be most important for academic achievement."

SCHOOL IMPERATIVES

The survey revealed some additional findings that have particular significance
for educators. The researchers found that:

Nearly seventy percent of non-resident fathers and 50 percent of
fathers in two-parent families are not involved in school-related activities.

School climate had a significant impact on the degree of father involvement,
particularly in grades 6 through 12.

The advantages of paternal involvement were most significant in grades
6 through 12.

Parental involvement in school activities decreases significantly
as children grow older.

Goal 8 of the National Education Goals states that "By the year 2000,
every school will promote partnerships that will increase parental involvement
and participation in promoting the social, emotional, and academic growth
of children." In view of the findings presented in this study, it is apparent
that educators must make specific efforts to significantly increase paternal
involvement in school events and activities. And they must continue and
intensify those efforts in the upper grades.

WHERE DO WE START?

A Father Times article -- It's Elementary: Uniting Schools, Children,
and Fathers -- offers teachers and administrators a variety of concrete
ideas for involving fathers in their children's schools.

The author recommends that administrators:

schedule weekend events and ask fathers to help plan and implement
those events.

recruit a "dad rep" to attend, and report on, district or school
board meetings.

ensure that texts and handouts avoid negative male stereotypes.

provide opportunities for staff to attend in-service programs about
effective ways of involving fathers in school activities and events.

ask fathers to share their jobs, favorite hobbies, or special talents
with students.

invite fathers to join their children for lunch.

He says middle- and high-school teachers can:

ask fathers to lend their skills to special events, such as building
sets or props for a school play, playing a musical instrument with the
school band, or baking for the annual bake sale.

provide fathers with literature regarding the impact of television
-- or father involvement -- on children.

encourage fathers and students to collaborate on video documentaries.

invite immigrant fathers to teach brief units on their native cultures
and languages.

suggest a Mother's Day project that fathers and students can do together.

In addition, teachers and administrators around the country have developed
their own ways of promoting paternal involvement.

One teacher assigns an autobiographical writing unit in which students
are encouraged to explore their family history, traditions, and so on
with their fathers.

Many schools with large numbers of non-English speaking parents hold
family-literacy programs in the school, providing fathers (and mothers)
with the opportunity to meet their own goals while becoming familiar
with their children's daily environment.

Teachers in Malden, Missouri, encourage paternal participation at
Family Unit Night (FUN), a regular event that includes cross-curricular,
multicultural activities on a particular theme.

It is apparent that children benefit from increased parental involvement
in their schools. Teachers and administrators, however, are sometimes
leery of encouraging that involvement, fearing that significant parental
presence in school might be disruptive for students, lead to unwarranted
criticism of individual teaching styles and methods, or result in uninformed
interference with established policies and programs. This study found,
however, that parents who are highly involved in school activities have
a better relationship with their child's teacher and a more positive opinion
of their child's school than parents who are less involved. In fact, everyone
benefits.